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IBM Informix vs SingleStore comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM Informix
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
Embedded Database (10th), Relational Databases Tools (23rd)
SingleStore
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
Database as a Service (DBaaS) (17th), Vector Databases (17th)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Databases solutions, they serve different purposes. IBM Informix is designed for Embedded Database and holds a mindshare of 2.6%, up 1.1% compared to last year.
SingleStore, on the other hand, focuses on Database as a Service (DBaaS), holds 2.9% mindshare, up 1.6% since last year.
Embedded Database Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
IBM Informix2.6%
SQLite21.6%
Firebird SQL16.6%
Other59.199999999999996%
Embedded Database
Database as a Service (DBaaS) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
SingleStore2.9%
Amazon RDS13.5%
MongoDB Atlas12.3%
Other71.3%
Database as a Service (DBaaS)
 

Featured Reviews

Nasir Niamat - PeerSpot reviewer
DB Consultant at i2c
Has offered a cost-effective option despite frequent technical issues and limited market demand
We find some bugs in IBM Informix. Maybe we are using it more aggressively than others. Every month or every second month, we find some bugs in it, which is not ideal. It should be rare, not this frequent. The good thing is they cover those bugs in the next release within weeks or days on demand. IBM Informix should become hybrid and should include AI features similar to other DBMS systems such as Snowflake, Redshift, and DataBricks. This would help its value rise with the market.
VK
Solution Architect at Wipro Limited
An excellent choice for diverse data processing needs with exceptional in-memory capabilities, robust failover mechanisms, easy scalability and high performance
Scalability is its key strength. Adding servers for scalability is a straightforward process involving simply incorporating a few additional servers and recycling the cluster triggers automatic repartitioning and redistribution of data. For instance, if the initial database creation involved a hundred servers and later, four more servers are added, specific commands can be executed to increase the partitions to one hundred twenty. The data is then efficiently redistributed across the expanded partitions without the need for manual data movement, ensuring a seamless and efficient scalability process. In my current organization, approximately three projects involve the usage of SingleStore, with a team size ranging from ten to twenty individuals.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"IBM Informix benefits users with high availability and good integration capabilities."
"It is very easy to install IBM Informix, very easy to scale, and support is quite better."
"So far, we do not have a lot of issues. It's pretty problem-free."
"For IoT business cases, having Informix Enterprise Edition work on edge computers, like Raspberry Pi and using Informix replication, makes complex situations simple to build and maintain."
"The most valuable feature is concurrency and locking because my customers usually use databases in OLTP mode. So, for a large number of competitive users. Other features that are well valued are quick large-scale data types. It is better than Oracle."
"This solution has made financial reporting possible by allowing financial people the opportunity to set Informix to "Auto Pilot" so that they can attend other duties."
"It supports in-house-built applications in .NET and VB6"
"It supports multiple applications and business intelligence tools."
"MemSQL supports the MySQL protocol, and many functions are similar, so the learning curve is very short."
"The ability to store data in memory is a standout feature, enhanced by robust failover mechanisms."
"The most valuable feature is the ability to create pipelines, streamline and extract data from the pipelines."
"It's a distributed relational database, so it does not have a single server, it has multiple servers. Its architecture itself is fast because it has multiple nodes to distribute the workload and process large amounts of data."
"The product can automatically reinstall and reconfigure in case of a shutdown."
"The paramount advantage is the exceptional speed."
 

Cons

"Continue extending the SQL language for compatibility with the competition's language, including Stored Procedure Language."
"In my opinion, the packages could be improved. The version I use doesn't allow for packages. I can do some general procedures, but no packages like in Oracle. So, develop separate modules in SQL language. This would be most beneficial for me."
"The solution really doesn't add new features very often."
"It would be helpful to have IBM salespeople know that Informix exists, and sell it. Currently, it is completely ignored by IBM."
"The pricing is a bit expensive."
"I would like to see backups from secondary servers."
"Every month or every second month, we find some bugs in it, which is not ideal."
"I experienced poor input/output (IO) performance."
"There should be more pipelines available because I think that if MemSQL can connect to other services, that would be great."
"It is not the optimal choice for direct data collection through queries, and it's more suited for aggregation tasks."
"Poor key distribution can significantly impact performance, requiring a backward approach in design rather than adding tables incrementally."
"Having the ability to migrate servers using a single command would be extremely beneficial."
"For new customers, it's very tough to start. Their documentation isn't organized, and there's no online training available. SingleStore is working on it, but that's a major drawback."
"We don't get good discounts in Pakistan."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"For me, it's always too expensive."
"I am not aware of the licensing costs or terms."
"The product has reasonable pricing. We purchase its yearly license."
"The free edition can be enough to handle moderate-size implementations, but you may want a pay for edition to benefit from more functionality, such as replication."
"The product's licensing is not expensive. It is comparable."
"Using it for analytical purposes can be cost-effective in the long run, especially in terms of infrastructure."
"I would advise users to try the free 128GB version."
"SingleStore is a bit expensive."
"They have two main options: cloud installation and bare-metal installation, each with different pricing models."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
University
7%
Financial Services Firm
30%
Computer Software Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Retailer
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise8
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Large Enterprise3
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Informix?
It supports multiple applications and business intelligence tools.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Informix?
There is a cost reason to move from IBM Informix. It is relatively cheaper than Oracle. The second reason is that moving the whole application to a new database would require significant cost. The ...
What needs improvement with IBM Informix?
We find some bugs in IBM Informix. Maybe we are using it more aggressively than others. Every month or every second month, we find some bugs in it, which is not ideal. It should be rare, not this f...
Ask a question
Earn 20 points
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

Informix
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Shaspa, Hildebrand, Kaifa, Ranhill Powertron, Federaci‹ Farmacutica (FedeFarma), Camden Council, The German Aerospace Center (DLR), Myers, Votorantim Group, Doosan Infracore, GreenIvory
400+ customers including: 6sense, Adobe, Akamai, Ant Money, Arcules, CARFAX, Cigna, Cisco, Comcast, DELL, DBS Bank, Dentsu, DirectlyApply, EY, Factors.AI, Fathom Analytics, FirstEnergy, GE, Goldman Sachs, Heap, Hulu, IMAX, impact.com, Kroger, LG, LiveRamp, Lumana, Nvidia, OpenDialog, Outreach, Palo Alto Networks, PicPay, RBC, Samsung, SegMetrics, Siemens, SiteImprove, SiriusXM, SK Telecom, SKAI, SONY, STC, SunRun, TATA, Thorn, ZoomInfo.
Find out what your peers are saying about SQLite, SAP, Firebird and others in Embedded Database. Updated: January 2026.
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